Alumni News In Memory Of W 1964-1988 Black Hills State College
Roy H. Borreson, Class of ’75, Minneapolis, Minn. Raymond G. Boyd, Jr., Class of ’79, Troy, Ohio Kathy L. (Schoenfelder) Burkhart, Attended, Piedmont Elaine B. (Surdej) Dolin, Class of ’70, Rapid City Don Eisenreich, Attended, Hot Springs Evanlena W. Garrison, Class of ’76, Muskogee, Okla. Bridget E. (Lane) Hansen, Class of ’78, Rapid City George E. Martin, Class of ’67, Indianola, Iowa James H. Merchen, Class of ’81, Powder Springs, Ga. Jeannie M. (Wiarda) Odenbach, Class of ’74, Burke Palmer H. Oliver, Class of ’76, Satsuma, Ala. Beverly M. (Gunnison) Orton, Attended, Rapid City Patricia (Gage) Petersen, Class of ’69, Rapid City Mandilee “Mandy” (Davis) Richerson, Class of ’71, Wenatchee, Wash. Randel M. Walgamuth, Attended, Denver, Colo. Ronald E. Waugh, Class of ’88, Hulett, Wyo.
1989-Present
Black Hills State University Sarah M. Austin, Attended, Union Center James T. Bishop, Attended, Spearfish Dennis W. Kennedy, Attended, Casper, Wyo. Douglas “Doug” Lefler, Class of ’94, Rapid City Cassandra Rupe-Pope, Class of ’97, Pierre Michael S. Stetz, Attended, Casper, Wyo. David C. Worthington, Class of ’05, Lakewood, Colo.
Former Faculty and Staff
Besse “Le Roye” (Crain) Carlson, Class of ’58 and ’66, Spearfish Shawn P. Funk, Class of ’03, Newell John F. Stephens, Class of ’49, Fort Myers, Fla. Betty D. (Carlson) Nelson, Spearfish
Higbee inspired others through compassion
alter Higbee, 81, teacher at Black Hills
State University for nearly 30 years, passed away Jan. 22, 2009 at his home in Spearfish after a long illness.
He joined the BHSU faculty full time in 1966, directing the school's program for pre- paring special edu- cation teachers. Walter remained in that position until his retirement in 1992.
Higbee
In addition to teaching courses on the Spearfish campus, he taught extension classes every semester for 26 years, across a region extending from Platte to Cody, Wyo. He gained a reputation as a pioneer in the special education field, published dozens of articles in professional journals, and was in demand as a speaker at conferences nationally. In 1973 he was part of an American team that examined special education services in the Soviet Union. In Spearfish, he served on the initial Northern Hills Training Center board of directors from 1976-1990. Walter was proud of his many former students who accepted positions in schools across the nation, sometimes as the first special education professionals in their school districts. He stayed in touch with many of those students for decades. Walter was born to Claude and Mabel Higbee Feb. 25, 1927 at Milo, Iowa. He grew up there, and his childhood adventures in Milo are well known to many South Dakotans. He relived them in a popular newspaper column published in the Rapid City Journal and the Black Hills Pioneer from 1995 to 2008. At age 17, during World War II, Walter enlisted in the
U.S. Army. After completing training in Texas in 1945, he boarded a troop ship and set off for service in the Pacific. A lifelong Chicago Cubs fans, he was stationed in the Philippines the last time his team appeared in a World Series. He assumed he would enjoy several more Cubs appearances in the Series, but it never happened. An accomplished billiards player, he came home to Iowa after
the war and decided he might make a living in the Des Moines pool halls. He credited his older brother, Max, with rescuing him from that life by enrolling him in college without his knowledge, which led to a long career in higher education. Walter earned degrees at Simpson College in Iowa, the University of Iowa, and the University of Minnesota.
He married Marion Winjum Dec. 22, 1951, at Red Wing, Minn. They raised six children. Walter and his family moved to Spearfish in the summer of 1961 when he began teaching summer education courses at Black Hills Teachers College. He is survived by his wife, Marion, and six adult children: Paul
(Janet), Spearfish; Scott (Elizabeth), Roseville, Minnesota; Rand, Hager City, Wisconsin; Susan, Spearfish; Rebecca, Spearfish; and Elizabeth, Spearfish. He is also survived by five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren, sister Hazel Persels and her husband, Dwaine, of Oxford Junction, Iowa, and many nieces and nephews. Walter was preceded in death by his parents and five of his six siblings.
Donations are being accepted for education scholarships in Walter Higbee’s name. Contact Steve Meeker at 642.6385 for details.
Black Hills State University Alumni Magazine Page 17
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